tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38617057314251115472018-03-06T10:35:33.739-08:00American Childbirth CultureEducating women about the true nature of childbirth and exposing the damaging effects of over-medicalization on our society in hopes of changing the culture of childbirth in America forever.Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05887446096431907770noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-80158429793113535702011-12-17T08:43:00.000-08:002011-12-17T09:16:38.283-08:00Walk Slowly, Live WildlyThe blog Walk Slowly, Live Wildly is written by a woman named Sara Janssen. She wrote an incredible post about pregnancy and birth that I find to be everything I want to say but can't always articulate as well as great tips on a healthy, natural pregnancy. Here is the link to her post and also a beautiful video she put together about the homebirth of her second child. I can't say enough about it.Dustin and Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12327015515704534162noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-74538036618340149112011-06-02T19:30:00.000-07:002011-06-02T20:14:02.655-07:00The Necessity of Home BirthIt's been awhile since we've updated this blog but the natural birthing spirit is alive and well! Life just gets kinda of crazy sometimes. Anyway, I just recently came across this article written by THE home birth guru Ina May Gaskin. She has revolutioned birthing practices since the 70's and has taught doctors a thing or two about birth. Here's a link to her bio . She is amazing! This article Dustin and Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12327015515704534162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-78072121411629431462010-03-13T11:56:00.000-08:002010-03-13T12:14:19.880-08:00It's About Time...It's about time that statistics on the risks of C-sections and the "too high" maternal mortality rate in the USA are getting a little national attention. In this article, about 2/3 of the way down, it highlights a report that found that too many women don't have access to more women-centered care like midwives and that too many medical interventions are being used during delivery! If only this Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05887446096431907770noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-68751181477301463392009-12-18T11:36:00.000-08:002009-12-18T11:48:02.601-08:00Mom fights, gets the delivery she wantsWow-this is a great article. Read it here. I saw this family in an article a couple of months ago when all this first became an issue. So, here it is-they did it and the mother was able to have a vaginal birth. I have to say though that it's scary to see this happening. Why should a woman have to do this in order to give birth the way she wants?Also, I have to comment on the quote by Dr. Flamm, Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05887446096431907770noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-35028475740782049422009-10-16T08:18:00.000-07:002009-10-16T08:55:09.014-07:00Big Savings?I found this quote the other day on "Midwifery News":"$13 to $20 billion a year could be saved in health care costs by demedicalizing childbirth, developing midwifery, and encouraging breastfeeding."— Frank Oski, MDIt got me thinking about what is going on with the health care reform. Will women have an easier time chosing the birth they want if we have national health care or will it become moreDustin and Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12327015515704534162noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-8943773028583481842009-09-03T22:11:00.000-07:002009-09-03T22:12:35.234-07:00Quote"We have a secret in our culture, and it's not that birth is painful; it's that women are strong." —Laura Stavoe HarmDustin and Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12327015515704534162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-71607252747905927952009-05-27T22:53:00.000-07:002009-05-28T09:38:11.764-07:00The Difference Between Right and WrongDuring the course of this blog, I've noticed a recurring issue that we haven't addressed directly yet-what's right and what's wrong in childbirth?...We definitely have opinions about that here (if you haven't noticed :)) but we should make it VERY CLEAR that what we find WRONG with childbirth has nothing to do with the individual decisions a woman makes, and EVERYTHING to do with the imposing Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05887446096431907770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-88857213158900128522009-04-16T00:06:00.000-07:002009-04-16T00:32:33.768-07:00March of DimesOne of the points that my sister and I try to make on this blog is that while we believe that natural childbirth is best way to go if at all possible, it is an extremely personal choice. What we strive for is to help women choose what kind of birth they want so there are no regrets nor guilt. As long as women know the risks of ALL kinds of births they can make an educated choice for what's right Dustin and Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12327015515704534162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-30386055126500694482009-04-07T21:53:00.000-07:002009-04-07T22:22:00.995-07:00ArticleHere's a link to a great article from CNN about how to avoid cesareans. One interesting statistic they have is that 44% of inducements end up being cesareans whereas only 8% of spontaneous labors do. Read it here. It's a good one!Dustin and Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12327015515704534162noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-22746990630165660962009-04-05T20:55:00.000-07:002009-04-05T23:00:13.337-07:00StoriesSo, the other night I was out playing Bunco with 7 other friends. We all had kids and 2 of the ladies are expecting again. Always interested in talking about birth, I struck up a conversation with one of the pregnant ladies. I casually said, "So who is your doctor?" (I know the names of all the doctors up here and their birthing "theories"/practices). She says her doctor's name and it is the Dustin and Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12327015515704534162noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-16633794692257224842009-03-30T15:01:00.000-07:002009-03-30T15:20:15.812-07:00BooksJust wanted to write a quick post to tell you that we've added a books list to the sidebar. We will add to this list as we read and hear about other birthing type books. Soon we hope to link these to book reviews explaining what we like about them. But for now it's just there to let you know what's out there if you want to know more. If you have any recommendations for us, let us know what Dustin and Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12327015515704534162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-16076528742132992222009-03-28T08:47:00.000-07:002009-03-29T16:48:00.654-07:00LinksI've just added some links that I found very informative.Choices in Childbirth website is great to find information on hospital statistics, questions to ask your health care provider, and you can order the Guide to a Healthy Birth which lists certain rights that a mother has with her birth, it's great. However, the organization is based in New York. Great if you live there, not so much if you Dustin and Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12327015515704534162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-59321063403613122102009-03-28T00:41:00.000-07:002009-03-31T15:39:20.823-07:00Business of Being BornI just watched the movie The Business of Being Born by Rikki Lake and Abbey Epstein. I have to say that it was an excellent movie. It really makes a strong argument that home birth is safe and a preferable way to give birth. I have heard that the movie glorifies home birth and vilifies hospital birth and doctors too much. Considering how much hospital births have been unjustifiably glorified Dustin and Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12327015515704534162noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-31632533779813788302009-03-19T10:35:00.000-07:002009-03-19T10:46:24.398-07:00Pretty Funny!I saw this online and thought it was so funny. I think it can also have some deeper meanings, too, if we try and think like an artist. So, you can decide what it means to you!Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05887446096431907770noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-82483824676198198512009-02-26T12:56:00.000-08:002009-02-26T15:00:53.097-08:00C-Section craze!!!I was going to write "my story" about my birth experiences since our blog is still new and we're trying to give some background but I've had something else on my mind and today was THE LAST STRAW! Yet another friend's doctor has given her the option of having a C-section for no particular reason. Perfectly normal, healthy pregnancy-sure, she's never gone overdue before and now she's two days overAnnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05887446096431907770noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-67300397679634969092009-02-25T10:34:00.000-08:002009-02-25T10:57:05.118-08:00PatronizingI have to say that I can't stand it when a doctor tells a pregnant woman who wants to have natural childbirth that she can do that "as long as everything goes well." That is so patronizing to me! It's like saying "you do whatever you want to do to make yourself feel better, little mother, I'll be over here doing all the important work with the baby because that's all the really matters." How Dustin and Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12327015515704534162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-4700493856593633842008-11-09T23:39:00.000-08:002008-11-10T08:13:00.478-08:00Laura's StoryWell, here's my birth story and how I came around to natural childbirth. With my first pregnancy I was 21 years old and thought the only rational way to have a baby was with an epidural. I didn't give it any thought and did not receive any encouragement to go natural from my doctor. So I had a completely fine and healthy delivery (with an epidural)and gave birth to a completely fine and healthy (Dustin and Laurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12327015515704534162noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3861705731425111547.post-45511359129456177192008-11-04T21:50:00.000-08:002008-11-06T19:42:32.084-08:00Pregnancy is Not a Medical ConditionOkay, so there’s a lot to discuss concerning this topic but to start off, we would like to share the thoughts of a friend who is a Certified Nurse Midwife. Her main topic here is homebirth which is something that too many people do not understand. But, she also gives some great insight on C-sections which is a pretty hot topic right now. Whether you are interested in having a homebirth yourself Annahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05887446096431907770noreply@blogger.com3